What I Learned From A Ride-a-long With A Real Trucker

While I still have a lot to learn about trucking, I thought that I would share what I believe I learned from my ride-a-long with Bird-one. The link to the ride-a-long summary is below.

I learned not so much technical information but rather more about the learning mindset in the context being actively engaged vs. being a passive bystander. Brett emphasizes commitment and taking a proactive approach to your success in trucking. It really clicked with me on the ride-a-long in the context of making a choice to be engaged vs. sitting back and letting things happen. Many of the posts that I see from what Brett calls the "complain, blame, and criticize" crowd involve the attitude of a passive participant. "My trainer didn't teach me anything." "A hidden ditch 'sucked' me in and I rolled over." These posts usually describe what happened to cause the failure but rarely describe what the poster attempted to do to resolve the situation or prevent the incident.

My ride-a-long was a great opportunity to spend a day with real trucker hauling a real load. I could have just sat back and observed, but I chose to be as engaged as I could. I engaged not only in the physical part of the job but also engaged Bird-one in conversation. Conversations about trucking and conversations about many other things. We both served in the Marines, Bird-one on active duty, me in the reserves. So, we bonded somewhat over that common experience. The conversation was enjoyable but it also allowed me to learn about trucking in a context beyond just an experienced driver giving me a laundry list of dos and don'ts about trucking.

One example involves when we were on a tight turn in a two-lane road. I looked in the fish-eye mirror to watch the off-tracking and casually mentioned this to Bird-one. He responded that he focuses on negotiating the turn at the front end because he is experienced enough to know where his trailer would off-track. Not that he doesn't "watch his wagon" but just that he travels those roads a lot and knows them well enough. The interesting thing about this interaction was that it occurred in the context of normal conversation. We didn't drive along in silence and then I asked "what are you doing now?"

My active engagement extended beyond just simple conversation and dialogue about driving skills. It involved three other components: absorbing what goes on around me, processing this information, and then thinking about the practical use of that information.

For example climbing up into the trailer and touching the pallets of milk crates. See below the milk crates in the warehouse.

It seems like such a minor and useless act, but in doing so, I realized how unstable the crates of milk were. After we were loaded, I noticed that the truck handled differently, from the sloshing of the liquid milk, which we talked about. And Bird-one drove a little differently. He used the jake-break more when approaching an intersection. Although we didn’t specifically discuss it, I expect that the unstable milk crates also contributed to the movement in the trailer and therefore requiring an extra level of careful driving. Also, Bird-one took a different route back to Chicago. Some of it may have been to see different scenery and stop at a particular stop. But in processing all this information, I thought about the tight turns on the incoming road, the lack of shoulders, the significant slope, and the unstable milk crates. And I thought about the drivers who had posted about a “hidden ditch” that had “sucked them in” and caused a rollover. In thinking about the conditions I described above, failure to keep the tandems on the pavement, coupled with the slope, and the shifting of the milk crates would have very likely caused a rollover, even going 5 mph. But these people who post about a “hidden ditch” that “sucked them in” and caused a rollover don’t’ give you the full story about conditions like these. And it may because they still don’t really understand the full set of conditions that caused the rollover. They are not actively engaged in trucking by absorbing the information around them, processing that information, and then developing a strategy to avoid incidents. They are passive participants and “bad things just happen to them.”

I know that I have a lot to learn about trucking. I know that I will continue to learn years into my career. But I have determined to approach it from the active perspective that I have described above. And with a little luck, I might make it through my rookie year incident free.

Dairy Haul Ride-a-Long

Rob gets it!

Great second part of your ride-along with BirdOne a few days ago. I so wish everyone had this opportunity, prior to achooling.

Most important thing besides driving skill is your attitude. Not letting other drivers get you involved in their personal drama is key. There are too many bad, distracted, and uncaring drivers to contend with on the road every day so having your mind right will keep you out of trouble. Even if another driver is doing something that you don't understand doesn't give you the right to be a jerk. Just let them do what they're going to do, get out of your way, then continue your route. I stopped trying to figure out why people do what they do years ago. The last thing I want to mention, especially to the newer drivers, is to be friendly to your fellow truckers. We're all just trying to make a living and get home safe and no one needs the extra unnecessary irritation of another trucker honking and giving the one finger salute just because you think what you have to get done is more important than the other guy. Waiting is a big part of everyone's day and a little patience goes a long way. If you do this job long enough you'll learn patience and the importance of safe relaxed driving. Take it easy out there.